The Philadelphia chapter of the Coalition of Labor Union Women (CLUW) held its annual awards reception in the assembly room of Workers United, 22 South 22nd Street in Philadelphia, on Thursday, June 23, 2016.
Chapter President Laura Wentz welcomed everyone attending, and introduced the newly elected officers and board members; she also announced the introduction of the chapter’s new web site, phillycluw.org.
Wentz spoke of when she represented national CLUW at the White House Summit on Women the previous week, where Vice President Joe Biden spoke on the Violence Against Women Act, “with the clarification,” she said, “that…when it comes to rape, it’s not the victim’s fault. We need to spread that word we need to make sure victims feel like it’s their fault, because it isn’t. It’s never your fault, it’s the perpetrator’s fault. We’ve got to make sure people know that.” The conference, added Wentz, stated that consent is essential to any encounter, because “without consent, it’s called rape.”
Wentz spoke also of when President Barrack Obama spoke at the conference and declared, “This is what a feminist looks like,” and she urged all the men in the audience to declare that also, telling them, “Without your help, we are not going to succeed.”
Wentz spoke of the work Philadelphia CLUW did with the labor movement, such as supporting the strike by Verizon workers, the work of the Fight for $15 And A Union (supporting fast food workers), and for the Restaurant Opportunities Centers (ROC), and the radio segments the chapter put on.
The Community Empowerment Award went to Lindsey Roth, for Project Safe, a harm-reduction collective that provides services to women engaged in the drug and sex trades. She is a graduate of the Columbia University School of Social Work and has a Bachelor’s degree from Swarthmore College.
The Union empowerment Award went to Neshaminy-Bucks CLUW 2016, which includes members of such unions as AFSCME, NFT, IBEW, NALC, AFGE, Plumbers, Boilermakers, and TWU.
The Rising Star Award went to Gabriella Jones-Casey, for her work in group Fight for $15 And A Union; while at Colgate University she took part in organizing around women’s and LGBT issues. Jones-Casey received her MSW from the University of Pittsburgh, where she took part in organizing against the Voter-ID bill and for voter registration.
Winners of the Lois Miller Appreciation Award-Joe (Doc) Dougherty, Joe Krause, and Pat Eiding, for their work in producing the PhillyLabor radio show, where Philadelphia CLUW has its segment.
The Union Woman of the Year Award went to Kathy Black, Treasurer of Philadelphia CLUW and former President for 21 years.